This super easy, 4 ingredient paleo and vegan chocolate pudding is so rich, creamy, and chocolatey that you won’t believe it’s dairy free, healthy, and refined sugar free! Top with coconut whipped cream for a perfectly dreamy chocolate dessert. 
Do you happen to remember my rant/warning about making coconut whipped cream with the right kind of canned coconut cream/milk? About the sad, sad times I spent trying to save whipped cream that didn’t whip at all, but rather turned into something that resembled cottage cheese?
I’ll say it has happened enough times to me over the course of the past two months for me to finally just stick to using canned coconut cream rather than the separated milk at all. However, my whipped cream tragedy did have a light at the end of the tunnel, a bright side, a victory! You know how they say when life hands you lemons, make lemonade? I say when life hands you un-whippable coconut cream, make chocolate pudding!
I’m talking ridiculously easy, so easy that it’s even possible to make it when the last thing you want to do in the world is cook ANYTHING. The truth is, I “discovered” this recipe long ago in a desperate attempt to not waste a $2.50 can of coconut milk after it failed at whipping properly. After making it about 3 times after the same problem occurred, I realized it was becoming one of my favorite desserts, and it was time to make things official 🙂
I like the irony of my photos (not 100% sure this is actually irony) with the perfectly whipped coconut cream sitting on top of pudding that was born from coconut cream that wouldn’t whip. If you haven’t read the other post and want to make deliciously creamy coconut whipped cream to top your pudding, I recommend you use this brand of canned cream (they’re small cans of cream only) which hasn’t failed me yet.
Since this recipe is pleasantly easy, I barely have any real tips before sending you along on your way to chocolate bliss! I would say first, make sure you sift your cacao (or cocoa) to make it easy to achieve a nice smooth and creamy pudding when you whisk everything.
I also found it effective to use a small whisk to get around the edges of the saucepan as well. But remember, if all else fails, just break out your immersion blender at the end, which has saved me during those times I forgot was too lazy to sift the cacao. I hope you’re ready for rich creamy chocolate heaven in a bowl! Let’s make this pudding!
Easy Paleo & Vegan Chocolate Pudding {Dairy-Free}
Easy Paleo & Vegan Chocolate Pudding {Dairy-Free}
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups organic coconut cream from a can*
- 1/2 cup raw cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
- 6 Tbsp pure maple syrup 6-8 Tbsp depending on how sweet you want it
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- generous pinch fine grain sea salt
Instructions
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In a small saucepan over low heat, whisk together the coconut cream, cacao, and maple syrup (start with 6 Tbsp, or even less if you want a very dark chocolate pudding) until smooth. I used a small whisk to get everything nice and smooth.
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The coconut cream will melt and the maple and cacao should combine well to create a smooth silky mixture. Continue to cook and stir over low/med heat for about 2 minutes, or until the mixture just begins to come to a boil with small bubbles.
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Remove from heat at this point, and stir in the salt and vanilla. Taste, and add a bit more maple if you'd like a sweeter pudding. You can pour the mixture into individual containers/bowls to chill and set, or simply in one larger bowl only and divide later on.
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Cover and refrigerate until set, or overnight for a thick creamy pudding. Makes about 4 servings. I love my pudding with a big dollop of coconut whipped cream on top! Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
*You can use this canned coconut cream, or you can use the thick part of a chilled, separated can of coconut milk. For this particular recipe, I used the Thai Kitchen full fat canned coconut milk, just the cream part.
What I Used To Make My Paleo & Vegan Chocolate Pudding:
Want more paleo and vegan chocolate desserts? Try one of these!
Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies {Paleo & Vegan}
Almond Butter Fudge Chunk “Nice Cream”
Chocolate Chip Cookie Vanilla Cheesecake
Tell Me!
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Hi! I'm Michele. Paleo eater and recipe creator, runner, and mom of 3. Welcome to my blog, where we obsess over all of it and love every minute! (It's way fun over here, promise.) Stay a while to eat, run, and rant with me! 
My little angels will love this, you are awesome, this is super simple!
Great! Hope you like it 🙂
I made a half batch tonight and didn’t realize until this very moment that I forgot to halve the cocoa. The whole time, I was thinking, “Wow! I must have a HUGE sweet tooth!” because I had to double (or something like that – I just kept adding more and more 😀 ) the maple and coconut cream. Haha. But once I did that, it was delicious! Even my husband who doesn’t like healthy cocoa based puddings loved it!
Thanks for the awesome recipe! I’ll try to make it correctly next time. 🙂
Lol, I’ve done things like that 🙂 So glad it worked out anyway this time, luckily it’s pretty resilient!
Is the syrup for sweetening and texture? Do you think using a sweetener such as Swerve or Sukrin Gold would work with this in place of the syrup, for those of us who are wanting a lower carb option?
You can use any other liquid sweetener and it wouldn’t affect the texture. I wouldn’t go with granulated though since it won’t dissolve well enough.
Fantastic your amazing!
I bought the can of coconut cream you recommended, but there is still some coconut water in the bottom of the jar. Do you use this or save for another purpose?
My kids loved this. I loved that I could give them a treat that’s good for them. Thanks!
Trader Joe’s carries coconut cream in the can (its in a red can). Works really well for whipped toppings without the fuss of skimming the cream from the milk. Another tip is to keep everything cold- freeze or refrigerate your mixing bowl and whisk prior to making your whipped topping.
Can you make vanilla pudding using the same recipe minus the cocoa powder? I would love to make a Banana pudding but can’t find a recipe for vanilla pudding for vegan/gluten free/ paleo! Any suggestions
I’m not sure how that would turn out, but I do think it would be delicious even if it didn’t taste exactly like vanilla pudding 🙂
Can you make this a couple of days ahead of time?
Yes definitely!
This looks delicious! I have been looking for a recipe that doesn’t have avacado in it! Haha
I made this and the next day it was more like frosting or fudge than pudding. any suggestions?